Collection area

Soviet occupation

Soviet occupation 1939–41

As a result of the Hitler-Stalin Pact of 23 August 1939, Soviet troops occupied strategically important sections of Estonian territory in October 1939. The so-called "base period" had begun. It formally lasted until August 16, 1940, when Estonia was incorporated into the Soviet Union as a Soviet republic.

In fact, it ended on June 16, 1940, the date on which the Soviet army completely occupied Estonia. On August 6, 1940, the Soviet authorities took over the executive power and the Estonian Postal Administration was declared dissolved. A month later, on September 9, 1940, the Telecommunications Administration of the Estonian Soviet Socialist Republic (ESSR) was established.

On November 25, 1940, the Soviet ruble was introduced as official currency in the ratio 1.00 crown = 1.25  rouble, which led to interesting mixed frankings, but was only used sporadically.

On December 6, 1940, Estonian postal charges lost their validity and Soviet stamps like charges were introduced.

Formally, Estonian stamps remained valid until 31 December 1940. In reality, only the 1940 Community Aid issue, the pigeon issue commemorating the 100th anniversary of the introduction of the stamp, and the Heraldic Lion series of postage stamps remained in counter sale. The latter remained in use beyond 31 December 1940 until mid-1941.

Officially, the Soviet Union announced the end of the Estonian kroon as a valid means of payment at the end of March 1941.

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Soviet occupation from 1944

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The transition period 1991

As the Estonian Soviet Republic (ESSR), Estonia was of course fully integrated into the Soviet Union's postal system. After various failed attempts against the Soviet bureaucracy to raise the Soviet Union's postal tariffs, which were not adequate for the services of the Estonian Post, the Estonian SSR declared the Soviet postal tariffs invalid as early as January 1, 1991 and defined its own, significantly higher domestic postal tariffs for letters, postcards and additional services such as registered mail posted in Estonia.

The postal administration of the ESSR thus (NB: still as a Soviet republic!) de facto left the system of postal administration of the Soviet Union.

Due to the lack of stamps in sufficient numbers, the impossibility for the postal administration of the (still) ESSR to print its own (Soviet or Estonian) stamps or to have them printed, and in order to use the Soviet postal stationery available in large numbers at the post offices, a variety of additional postmarks (some also as local issues) were applied as value stamp imprints on postal stationery, envelopes and postcard forms and these were sold at post office counters at the new postal rate.

Mixed frankings with Soviet stamps for higher postage rates and after fee increases were the order of the day.

During the coup d'état in the Soviet Union on August 18-21, 1991, Estonia took the opportunity to reconstitute its independence on August 20, 1991.